My Hopes for 2012

I love a new year.  The same way I've always loved a new school year or a new journal - they are so unknown - so full of promise.  This year I am especially excited for the new start.  The last six weeks of my pregnancy were really difficult for me and every day (multiple times) I would imagine it being the new year - knowing the pregnancy would be done and Luka would be here and that things would start to "normalize."  I am extra thankful this year for everything that happened during 2011 and that it is now done.  :)  And here are some of my hopes for the new year:


Settling Down
I am tired.  Yes, you say, of course I am tired with a 2.5 week old in the house.  'Tis true, but I am also just exhausted from all of the changing landscapes of our life.  In the last two years we had our first baby, stopped sleeping for approximately 11 months, renovated a condo, moved twice, lived with the in-laws for 9 months, sold a house, bought a house, I started a new job, Ray started a new job, we survived The Pregnancy, we had another baby, Ray accepted another new job... we have had 4 different nannies and 1 day care, 1 cancerous tumor removed from Ikaika, a cancer-scare tumor removed from Mela and countless other dramas (good and bad) that I am repressing forgetting.  So many of the changes have been good (VERY good!), but all of that changing is making this girl long for monotony and predictability, if only for a little while.  I am looking forward to a year with no new jobs, new houses or new babies.  A year where we can settle into our little family of 4 (plus 2 stinky pups) groove and just BE.

Nesting
Moving into a new house while pregnant and starting a new job does not leave energy (or time or money) for nesting.  Heck, we haven't even unpacked most of our bathroom and office stuff and need to rummage through The Pile of Boxes every time we need a paper clip or a band aid.  I am hopeful that this year I will unpack those boxes (I will give myself the whole year because I don't deal well with pressure) and start to make this house more of a home.  Ray is more than ready to have some grass come Spring instead of the dirt and weed patch we currently have.  Maybe even paint the outside of the house so that it is all one color (I do love colors, but don't particularly like any of the 3 colors currently on the house).  Get rid of the broken hot tub, perhaps give the kids some space to play, finish the eletrical for the exhaust hood... ah the fun of dreaming!

No 2012 resolutions for me, just the intention to appreciate the days as they come and go.  I love my life and my family and I am ready to settle in, nest and enjoy where I am in this journey of life.  Happy 2012 to everyone - I hope it is our best year yet!

Christmas 2011

Check out some photos of our family Christmas.  We opened stockings Christmas morning and then joined Ray's extended family for dinner at his aunt's house.  

Our stockings on our mantle (we have a mantle!):

Our tree (notice the little naked shadow with a hooded towel "cape" in the foreground):

Ray's gift to me (Toms shoes and a spa day!):

Train whistle (like Uncle Mitchel had!): 

Doctor's kit (actually still out from his birthday the day before...)  We knew it would be a hit because our midwife Shannon used to let him use the stethoscope and blood pressure cuff at her visits and he would sit very still and imitate everything she did (practically a miracle):

Dinosaur stickers (lasted 2 minutes, but they were happy minutes):

In a state of present overdrive after 36 hours straight of presents:

Helping the dogs open their stockings:

His "laundry" and "kitchen" (awesome consignment scores!):

A piano from Grandpa:

His wooden recycling truck (another consignment find and such a San Francisco kind of toy):

His gift from Nani (basketball hoop for the bath tub!):

The local cousins (Roscoe trying to break the nutcracker, Basi with a fake smile, Diwa thinking why am I sitting here and Luka still overwhelmed with the realization that there is a world beyond our house):

 

Sharing corn on the cob with Diwa and Auntie Marilou:

 How Luka and I spent the day (both in a state of half-sleep):

The family:

Luka's Second Week

This is a big milestone in my mind - every day I would count down in my head until the two week mark.  I knew that is when I had clearance to move past the couch/bed and start resuming more regular activity, I knew I would feel a lot better and I would have healed significantly.  I knew breastfeeding would start to get easier and we would have settled into some sort of routine.  And we have arrived!  I even made dinner for the first time last night to celebrate the occasion!  (nevermind that it was only pasta and I was in a zombie state...)

Another exciting week around our house draws to a close:

* Luka took her first car ride when her and I were so stir crazy we just had to get out of the house (what to do when you can't stand or walk much? - this really limits your options!).  We went for a drive and checked out the Christmas lights and stopped at In & Out (yum!).  Roscoe is fascinated by this little girl that rides next to him now and kept giving her toys to play with (when he wasn't kicking her car seat...)

* She had her first bath which lasted all of 1.5 minutes.  She didn't cry right away - I don't think she knew what to think, but our house is hecka cold (got to love the here-and-there heat we have) and we didn't want to keep her in there long.  I still don't know what to do with her hair.  I am such a hippie at heart that I don't think Roscoe used soap for like 6 months, but then again we didn't have the issue of hair to deal with... must consult with her stylist (aka Ahmoo) when she arrives next week.

* Luka had her first pediatrician visit and checked out A-OK.  She did have to have her belly button cauterized because a portion of it wasn't healing after the umbilical cord stump fell off.  She only cried for a bit and now it is healing much better.  Our little lady is in the 80th percentile for height and head size and the 99th percentile for cuteness.

* She celebrated her big brother's birthday by, well, eating, crying, pooping and sleeping.

* She celebrated Christmas in much the same fashion.

* I survived my first days home alone with the two of them when Ray went back to work.  They are actually cooperating fairly well so far in that they alternate melt-downs so that I can focus on one or the other most of the time.  Unfortunately for me I don't get a free second and with the whole not sleeping and still recovering thing I count down the seconds until Ray comes home (even more than before).  Fortunately for me, it worked out brilliantly that it was just Roscoe's birthday and Christmas and he has loads of new toys and activities to keep him entertained.

All in all, another good week.  The biggest positive that has come from having such a suck-tastic last six weeks of pregnancy is that many, many times a day I just thank God I am not in that space anymore.  Even though this newborn stuff is tough, I am SO HAPPY to be here and not there.  When I remember what I felt like then, I can actually feel the relief pour through my body that it is OVER.

Coming up for week three: diaper changing, laundry, New Years, diapers, laundry, grocery shopping, diapers, laundry, baths all around, more diapers, more laundry and then a visit from Ahmoo!

Daddy's Girl:

French Toast Birthday Breakfast (Courtesy of Dada):

Christmas Baby:

Wide Awake (this must have been taken at night...):

Luka's First Week

Luka woke up to eat at 5am this morning and I looked at the clock and realized she was exactly 1 week old. It is already hard for me to believe that just over a week ago I hadn't met her yet and wondered what she would be like.  She is every bit as precious as we hoped.

Here are some family highlights from Little Lu's first week in this world:

* I am still couch-bound as I heal, which means Ray is in SuperDada and SuperHusband mode waiting on us all and keeping the house running.  It's a good thing he has had some time to relax and... go to the gym.  Huh?  Doesn't sound relaxing?  Yeah, not to me either, but Ray is a different animal.

* Big Brother Roscoe got the stomach flu 24 hours after she was born.  It was a rough few days for our poor little Roo with a new sister to adjust to and the whole projectile vomiting thing.  Ray and I spent the next several days trying to keep them away from each other and in perma-disinfect mode.  Thankfully Roscoe recovered quickly and the rest of us managed to avoid the germies.

* She sleeps.  Did you hear that?  SHE SLEEPS.  And does not scream at us all day (and night) long.  This ranks up there with things I am most grateful for in my life.  I adore Roscoe and he is worth every single screaming second we spent with him, but I don't know if we would have survived another year like that - especially with a 2 year old.  I finally understand what Heather means when she says newborn cries are cute and we finally get how people leave the house with newborns.  She is a sweet little bug, this one.

* Roscoe is getting used to the whole big brother thing.  He does want to be carried more and has, at times, pretended to cry like a baby and ask for milk.  He is also not a fan of his favorite people coming over and paying attention to Luka instead of focusing on him.  On the flip side, he has discovered what fun it is to imitate the sounds Baby Lu makes and likes to pat her and kiss her when she cries.  He also likes to share his toys and feed her his snacks.

* Oh, and Ray accepted a new job offer.  His current job hasn't turned out as he had hoped and a great opportunity came along, so in he jumps...

Week two is sure to be just as exciting with Roscoe's second birthday and Christmas squeezed in!

And some recent photos:

Daddy's Boy:

Leaves:

The Final Days of the Neverending Pregnancy... Roscoe and I took several long walks:

And the dogs followed me around like I was made of treats (I am trying to give Roscoe a bath here and they are crowding me in the little bathroom):

What's a Daddy to do when Mama can't carry Roscoe, but he wants to be carried when the vacuum is on?

And then came Baby... I still can't get over the fact that she sleeps and feel the need to constantly document it:

Little Luka Mae

Our sweet little girl has arrived!  In her own time and perfectly healthy.  We are so grateful (and I am so relieved to be done with that pregnancy...).  Here are the stats and some pics:

born December 14, 2011 at 5 o'clock in the morning - on the dot!

8 lbs 1 oz

19.5 inches

Luka Mae

 

 

 

Baby Boy Boom

In the past 3.5 months, here are the babies welcomed by our family and friends (ALL BOYS!):

Winston (Joel & Karen):

Jacob (Leah & Matt):

Jayce (Mitchel & Heather):

Nachi (Alex & Mia):

Maxwell (Katrina & David):

Rizal (Genghis & Anna):

Adam (Ruthie & Tony):

Oliver (Chris & Maria):

Our daughter is not going to get away with being a princess in that company!  And, yes, for the record, the last two were due after our baby girl and are now a couple of weeks old... she is still working on her fashionably late entrance.  Perhaps even trying to show her brother up (tomorrow will be 8 days late, which is when Roscoe arrived...).